New Delhi: Information and Broadcasting Minister Manish Tewari condemned Saturday's attack on journalists by supporters of spiritual guru Asaram Bapu in Jodhpur. Two on-duty journalists were left injured after they were attacked by a horde of Asaram’s supporters, who gathered near the godman’s ashram in Jodhpur on Saturday.

“Assault on journalists by a religious preacher's followers extremely disturbing and condemnable. Is this what they teach & preach to their flock?" Manish Tewari wrote on the social networking website Twitter.

"People must remember that whosoever he may be, he is not above law but law is always above. I am sure the Rajasthan government will see to it and bring the perpetrators to justice," Tewari told a news channel.

Asaram Bapu was served a notice on Tuesday at his ashram in Indore, Madhya Pradesh, asking him to appear before police in Jodhpur for questioning before or on August 30. However, he failed to turn up following which a police team from Jodhpur has left to track him down and question him.

Broadcast Editors’ Association condemns attack on scribes

Condemning the attack on journalists outside Asaram Bapu's ashram in Jodhpur, the Broadcast Editors' Association (BEA) has called for implementation of adequate and proper steps to ensure safety and security of mediapersons.

In a statement released in New Delhi, the BEA said that it is ‘shocked’ at the attack on media persons by the supporters of Asaram Bapu. It also demanded ‘immediate steps for safety and security of media persons as democracy cannot afford to allow anybody to hold the rule of law to ransom.’

"Any such attack is an attempt to prevent media from discharging its legitimate duty of dissemination of information - a duty that is vital to the healthy functioning of a democracy," said the BEA, whose members include editorsof leading news channels.

Supporters of Asaram on Saturday allegedly attacked a TV reporter and a cameraman at his ashram in Jodhpur. The TV journalist claimed that they had gone to Asaram's ashram to cover the developments related to the spiritual guru, when some of his followers attacked them and snatched their camera.

Asaram has been accused of sexually assaulting a 16-year-old schoolgirl, an inmate of his Jodhpur ashram